let me finish tonight with this. president obama is a conviction politician. that means he stands for things. he runs for office to accomplish things. he believed in health care and he got it done. he opposed unnecessary wars and is now being attacked for someone who shares his view. chuck hagel is someone said barack obama with a war record we barely associate with the neoconservatives. the president should pick a secretary of defense he trusted of doing the best job of helping him defend the country. that's "hardball" for now.

"politics nation" with al sharpton starts right now. >> thanks, chris. and thanks to you. tonight's lead, the gop crack up. in less than two hours, speaker boehner and his house republicans will vote on the tax planl. so what is the plan from the leader of the least productive congress in more than 60 years? extending the bush tax cuts for all income up to $1 million a year. amazing. they say they're serious about the deficit. but if you make $900,000, you can get a tax cut. they're not voting to protect american families, just the richest of them. for those making more than a million dollars a year, they get a $50,000 tax credit at the same time the gop plan raises taxes on 25 million working families by removing deductions they rely

on. did boehner and company miss the election? did they manage to overlook the fact that it was all about ending the unfairness that hurts this country? they must have. the boehner also guts the safety net, it cuts money for food stamps, for the health care law and for medicaid. and, yet, somehow they're acting like this is the only plan on the table. >> senate democrats and white house refuse to act. they'll be responsible for the largest tax hike in american hus ri. >> they can support these measures or be responsible for reckless spending and the largest tax hike in american history. >> they've already put forth a plan that's balanced. >> let's extend the middle class tax cuts right now. in fact, the senate has already passed a bill doing exactly this. all we need is action from the

house. and i've got the pen ready to sign the bill right away. >> if we can get a few house republicans to agree, i'll sign this bill as soon as congress sends it my way. i've got to repeat. i've got a pen. >> that's the choice now on the table. the president's plan that gives tax relief to 98% of americans of the republicans plan to help the rich while gutting the safety net. it's all a question of numbers. and here's a number for you. the number 11. that's the approval rate of boehner's congress. here's another number. 57. that's the president's approval rating. anyone want to guess who has the upper hand in this fight? >> joining me now is congressman

emanuel and jane walsh and an msnbc analyst. thanks to both of you for being here tonight. >> good to be with you. >> thanks, reverend. >> congressman cleaver, what is going on here. did speaker boehner not know we just had an election over this and that they lost? >> no. reverend, this is amazing: it's one of these situations where the quarterback calls for a pass, the lineman are blocking for a run, the wide outs are covering a punt and the coach is going up in the stands to sell popcorn. this is absolutely crazy. and i can tell you because i'm walking about talking with some of my republican friends and they're saying it is crazy. i've never seen anything like it. it's embarrassing because this is the united states of america. >> it's chaos, joe.

you're seeing this out right bedlam, as the congress is saying americans have talked about dysfunction. this is dysfunction with steroids. and they're acting as if we can't count. the only way you can bring the taxes to the millionaires, really, basically, saying 900 people -- people that make $900,000 a year can keep their tax deductions or their tax breaks, you're going to have to take that from the middle class. you wrote about that today. break down what this really will be in terms of make iing the mie class have to pay out of their pocket. >> it's just a complete shachl. thank god we have representative cleveland here to enlighten us. it means it can't be understood. john boehner is looking out for

john boehner and looking out for his job. he does not at this moment have the votes. we're going through this sham to protect the rich. i do think that they were trying to do something tricky and look like, okay, maybe we sort of got that americans would like to see the rich pay a little bit more in taxzs so we'll do this one symbolic thing. but the right wing then demand that they gut programs for the poor and for the middle class. so it's, you know, it's kind of like a sugar-covered satan sandwich? >> i think we've all eaten satan sandwiches. i think satan just got some helpers here, congressman. because we're talking about not only gutting food stamps and gutting other programs. we're talking about dealing with deductions that middle class people use for their children's

education. they're really talking about protecting people that make up to 7 figures by charging it to people that really need those deductions and need that income. >> in the past, we've had a war on poverty. now we need a war of bad ideas. that's exactly what we're facing. i hope the people who are looking at this understand that this whole bill reconciliation that we've been voting on has sequestration on only poor people. we're talking about health care to the poorest people. we're talking about medicare. we're talking about medicaid. these are the programs that will be impacted by this bill. i'm not sure if they have the vote, but the american people ought to be outraged that we have the audacity to bring something like this to the floor

at a time like this in our country when we all ought to be pulling together, trying to feel our way around to solving this problem of violence and crime that i know you've committed yourself to dealing with, reverend. >> now, joan, what are we looking at here? are we looking at the caucus that will not let boehner make a deal? and that he's become a captain of the caucus? or are we looking at boehner acting reasonable in one hand but, in fact, unreasonable when you look at his so-called plan b? what's really happening here when you look at what is going on because look who's talking? there are reports that he couldn't get his own caucus to vote for the debt deal. then he had to make a personal plea to get votes for even plan b. and even that he had to offer

sweeteners to plan b to drum up support for that. >> yes, sweeteners which are really bitter pills for the rest of the country. no, i don't know what's in john boehner's heart. but, clearly, he could never deliver votes for a deal with the president, any kind of blanlsed deal that contain things that people like me wouldn't be happy about. i think the president was in good faith negotiating and there was going to be pain on both sides. he went to plan b as a kind of face-saving thing because they know, they know that the american people are going to go to the republican party if we go over the so-called cliff. they want to appear to be doing something and he can't get the votes in his caucus to do this. i truly think -- behind the scenes, who knows. i'm sure people are still trying to talk. but i don't see how we go over the cliff. >> i don't understand how we can

overt this, either. keep in mind, harry reid said it's dead. the senators are going to get in a plane, shortly, saturday, flying to hawaii, as they should. and then we've got holidays. and i don't think anybody around here is going to be dealing with. we have a 72 hour period in the house. i don't understand how we're going to be able to do this before the end of the year. so on january 2nd, we're talking about $55 billion cut in non-defense and a $65 billion cut in defense. that is devastating to the economy. and it's also going to be devastating to the american people who are sitting around with those tax extenders falling away from their pocketbooks.

including unemployment benefits. >> we've seen the defense and non-defense kick in in terms of reductions. and, as you said, they have a colleague who was a longer-serving senate -- senator's funeral. they're out of there on saturday. >> i think we're walking around on the edge right now. and we're not mountain goats. so we don't walk well on the cliffs. >> all you need is a slip. and we are -- we seem to have on slippery shoes at this point. congressman emanuel cleveland and congressman joe walsh, good to be with you here this evening. >> first they wanted president obama's birth certificate. now they want o see hillary clinton's medical records. the gop's newest sneer uncovered.

plus, newt gingrich theory about the election? here's a hint. it's all about newt. and the city i'm in tonight, chicago, is now the shooting capital of america. but where's the national out cry? we're going to tlry to find out. you're watching "politics nation" on nbc live from the windy city. they're... optimistic. productivity up, costs down, time to market reduced... those are good things. upstairs, they will see fantasy. not fantasy... logistics. ups came in, analyzed our supply chain, inventory systems... ups? ups. not fantasy? who would have thought? i did. we did, bob. we did. got it.

this year, 465 people have been killed, mainly by guns, in chicago. 465 is an out rage. so where's the out rage? that's next. get a great deal on a new subaru

and 250 dollars goes to your choice of five charities. by the end of this, our fifth year, our total can reach almost 25 million dollars. it's a nice reflection on us all. now through january 2nd. get 0% apr financing for 36 months on a 2013 subaru forester and we'll donate 250 dollars to your choice of 5 charities. [ male announcer ] the rhythm of life. [ whistle blowing ] where do you hear that beat? campbell's healthy request soup lets you hear it... in your heart. [ basketball bouncing ] heart healthy. great taste. mmm... [ male announcer ] sounds good. it's amazing what soup can do.

welcome back to "politics nation" live tonight from chicago. the government has proclaimed tomorrow a day of mourning for the victims of the sandy hook elementary school shooting. gun violence is not a suburban issue or an urban issue. it's an american issue. here, in chicago, gun violence is an epidemic. take a look at this map of the city. the yellow dots mark all of the shootings that have taken place in chicago this year alone. the red dots represent people killed by gun violence in 2012. all toll, 465 people have been killed in chicago this year.

including 62 school-aged children. all of these murders and mass killings are tragedies. we've had almost segregated response. every child's life should have equal value. yet, too many people have been silent about the murders in places like chicago. the gun debate has been raging for a long time chlts but none of us have done enough. yesterday, the president was asked this question. >> this is not the first issue of horrific gun violence of your four years. where have you been? >> where has he been? where has the congress been? where has everybody been? gun violence wasn't part of the national debate in the presidential elections this summer when chicago was turning into the shooting capital of america. we all allowed this to happen. joining me now is father michael

flager, a key social activist here in chicago who's been fighting against gun violence and congressman elect hakeen jeffreys of new york. today, he was appointed to the house judiciary committee which is expected to take up the issue of gun control early next year. thank you both for being here tonight. >> thank you, reverend. >> thank you, reverend sharpton. >> father, why haven't we done more to combat gun violence in this country? >> i think the number one issue is the primary victim of gun violence across america, including chicago, is black and brown. and why black and brown continues to be the victim, america stepped back and said that's an inner city problem. so there hasn't been the out rage. this is a human problem. this is an american problem, as you've said, that we ought to be embarrassed by in this country. that we're trying to bring peace around the country, across the world and not doing it at home. and there's not been out rage. elected officials in congress

because we've been duped by an nra who has continued to fear us. guns make money. they are making money off the lives of black and brown children. >> congressman elect jeffreys, you've been appointed to the judiciary committee. and one of the things night before last action network and i went to connecticut because we must reach out and not go and finger point one community is more important than another. we all are in trouble. how do we get the congress to move in the light of this situation that has just happened in connecticut that has been happening in chicago, been happening in new york, as you've worked with us, you remember now, been happening all over this country. how do we get them to move now and not let the holidays take this off of the minds of the american public and therefore, your klicolleagues escape throu the stroke of distraction.

>> there's an epidemic of gun violence all across america. it's been increasingly prevalent in suburban communities. it's something that we in the inner city in brooklyn and harlem, southeast washington, d.c., south central los angeles have been dealing with and it's become all too familiar. this summer in new york city was a summer of great violence. as you know, you helped to shine the spot light on some of the things that were taking place in new york. the problem now is one that i think can no longer be ignored by the congress. and the newtown tragedy has made a claim that it's no longer possible and should no longer be possible for the second amendment to shield the go government's ability to enablgt sensible gun safety measures. for too long, the second amendment has been used as such a shield. it protects responsible gun ownership, but it cannot protect

the ability of people to possess high capacity ammunition clips, assault weapons, that can unleash mayhem on a community, on a school, on a neighborhood in a matter of moments. and i think there is going to be a moment in the early part of the congress, the democratic caucus, under the leadership of nancy pelosi has led to it. and i begin to see cracks in the firewall that has existed with the nra that has been put up. >> the nra is supposed to have their press conference. tomorrow, we hear what they say. when the second amendment was writen, we were talking abpeople with muskets. but let me ask you, father flager, as the congressman elect said, it's hamming all over the country. but, here, in chicago, 465 deaths by gunfight. give people a sense.

you have been marching, you have been religious, you've gone to jail. 465 death, including gunfire. 62 children. give us a sense of what goes on. >> when you have communities that suffer from high unemployment, no infrastructure, a shortage of afterschool programs, you create a perfect storm. and then you have communities that have more guns than computers. children live in fear. how do you study in school if you're afraid to go hoechl, you're afraid to come to school. people have been shot in their homes. children have been shot in this beds, porches and living rooms. our kids, the new landmarks of our neighborhoods are teddy bears and yellow police tape.

this past june, not one high school graduation that i went to did not have part of the service memorial for classmates that were killed. >> congressman elect, let me ask you quickly. do you feel that the activism that we're seeing out of what has happened in newtown, that we can now have hope and let's not forget. it's happened before. aurora, tucson, columbine, what will make this different? >> there's a culture of violence that has to be confronted in america. and what makes this different is just the imagery of 20 innocent children massacered. for parents to have received that call, that they won't be able to pick up an alive -- a child that's alive, but they have to go identify a dead child, i think, has sere d an image in the imagination of

americans all across the country who realize that we've got to confront this epidemic. it has shakened the conscious of america in a way that is meaningful and will be different this time. i hope that you are right. >> we all have failed because we've not made this -- make this country stop and deal with the death of children. we need to, in the name of what happened, in newtown and what's happening in chicago, to define this as the one thing this country can unite on. thank you for your time tonight. >> thank you, reverend sharpton. >> still ahead, newt's got a new theory about why republicans lost. it's yet another sign the gop has learned the wrong lessons from the election. i always wait until the last minute.

can i still ship a gift in time for christmas? yeah, sure you can. great. where's your gift? uh... whew. [ male announcer ] break from the holiday stress. ship fedex express by december 22nd for christmas delivery.

[ coughs ] [ baby crying ] ♪ [ male announcer ] robitussin® liquid formula soothes your throat on contact and the active ingredient relieves your cough. robitussin®. don't suffer the coughequences™. anyone have occasional constipation,

diarrhea, gas, bloating? yeah. one phillips' colon health probiotic cap each day helps defend against these digestive issues with three strains of good bacteria. approved! [ phillips' lady ] live the regular life. phillips'. you know how painful heartburn can be. for fast, long lasting relief, use doctor recommended gaviscon®. only gaviscon® forms a protective barrier that helps block stomach acid from splashing up- relieving the pain quickly. try fast, long lasting gaviscon®.

>> we've within busy here all year. and, now, we have another. congressman tim scott will move to the senate next year, bringing with them a tea party specialty. >> here's what got said back in

20 ten about ear muffs. lawmakers getting money for pelt projects. >> we hear people talking all of the time. >> what we need is courage. we need a backbone and some conversation. >> earmarks are hogwash. that's fun to say. but what do you know? turns out the congressman wanted to bring home the bacon. then progress report scott tried to direct federal dollars to projects back in south carolina. he signed a letter to the energy department to quote express our support." look. there's his signature. and the company he pushed for ended up getting half a million dollars from the energy department. did congressman scott think we wouldn't notice that he bashes earmarks in public but still

tries to send the pork home? that's hogwash. nice try. but we've got you. [ male announcer ] research suggests cell health plays a key role throughout our lives. one a day men's 50+ is a complete multivitamin designed for men's health concerns as we age. it has 7 antioxidants to support cell health. one a day men's 50+.

it has 7 antioxidants to support cell health. try running four.ning a restaurant is hard, fortunately we've got ink. it gives us 5x the rewards on our internet, phone charges and cable, plus at office supply stores. rewards we put right back into our business. this is the only thing we've ever wanted to do and ink helps us do it. make your mark with ink from chase.

tonight's vote on the gop's ridiculous plan b just goes to show how far they've fallen out of the mainstream and the american people know it. in 2010, right before the midterm elections, 36% of americans said the republican party was too extreme. now, after two years of republican misrule in the house, 53% say the gop is too extreme. for the first time, a majority of americans say the republican party has gone too far to the right. well, the gop doesn't get it. they're learning all the wrong lessons from the election, starting with newt gingrich, who claims they lost just because mitt romney was a bad candidate.

gingrich says quote i think either rick perry or i would have probably done better. my impression is that from the obama team standpoint, the two candidates they found the hardest to cope with we are perry and me. oh, yeah, newt. i'm sure the two of you had all the folks in the obama headquarters quaking in their boots. how in the world could they have handled you guys? >> this is such a cool state. i mean, come on. live free or die? and it's like live free or die, victor of death. bring it. >> by the end of my second term, we will have the first permanent base on the moon and it will be american. >> i mean, my luck. today has been awesome, girl. >> i got bit by a penguin. >> you went to a zoo? >> i went to the st. louis zoo and i've been bit by a penguin. >> i got bit by a penguin.

truly words to send tremors of fear down the spine of every democrat in america. but the sad truth is it's politicians like that who says they're trying to lead the gop back to the mainstream but, instead, they're leading the party right off a cliff. joining me now is joe madison and democratic strategist margie o''mara. thank you both for joining me. joe, a majority of americans say the gop is too extreme. what will it take for republicans to change their ways? >> no, it takes changing their leadership. you have the speaker of the house who will probably go down in history as the worst speaker of the house, i think, in modern political history. there's a situation here in terms of his title. but the tail is wagging the dog. you also have a party that doesn't have courage because

grover norquest has them signed to a pledge, other than the constitution, that now he has thrown them under the bus. all of this time, do not raise taxes on anybody. and grover norquest just said okay, i'll take plan b as long as it screws poor people. here you have a president who is transformational. this is what we can say about president obama. you have a leader of the republican party, at least in the house, who, at best, is no more than transactional. and he's not good at that. >> well, he's not even transacting well with the members of his own caucus. but let me go to you with this, margie. when you go to the right wing and the lessons they have seemed to have not learned from the election. george wilbur wrote a column. let me go there. we spent a lot of time talking about voter suppression on this show.

he wrote in this column, a small voting requirement such as registration, acts to filter potential voters with the weakest motivations. he goes onto say as indifferent our reluctant voters are dragged to the polls, the caliber of the electorate must decline. we have this kind of view among those that are supposed to be the more enlightened conservatives. >> it isn't just any one columnist or any one candidate or losing candidate. it's really the entire par i. it's not leadership. it's really troubling in the poll that even a fifth of republicans say that their own

party has become too extreme. it's certainly not a plan you're seeing in plan b where they want to make cuts to food stamps and raise taxes on 25 million american families. we ha we're not saying we should be arming teachers. that's our solution. and so i don't really see a lot of evidence that republican leadership or republican rank of follow or figures are using this election as an opportunity to learn something about where they are or where voters are. >> well, joe, in support of margie, which she doesn't see, let's look at a couple of highlights of what the gop has done since the election. they walked away from the fiscal cliff deal. they passed antiunion laws in michigan, proposed new schemes to rig electoral college,

planned new anti-choice bills in states like michigan, arkansas and texas. i mean, it's almost like the election never happened. absolutely. it's like they almost forgot who won. look, this is one they had during the primary. one of the most tenacious, one of the most ridiculous -- you just played a lot of clips. you left out some of the really good ones. they had all of those debates. people got to see and decide, look, all of these guys are extreme. every last one of them. and then they claim oh, we didn't have the best kand dot, who, by the way, tried to go to

the cent er and folks figured that ut. they underestimated the fact that, reverend sharpton, they're playing to a small minority. they keep playing to this loud, small minority where most of america has moved on, including their children. the younger generation. that's where they're failing. >> well, marge, when you listen to joe say that, those statistics bear him out. appalled nbc wall street journal poll says the favorability among republicans now is 30%. that's a 10-year low. and while we'll dealing with critical issues, we're about to go over the fiscal cliff if we're not careful. we're on the verge of that anyway. fox news, they decide the war on christmas is the big story and interviews santa claus. watch this.

san santa, i understand you don't like to say happy holidays. >> i can't find any reference that santa has said anything other than merry christmas. >> what do you make of the political correctness of our culture? >> you have got the biggest belt buckle i've ever seen. >> i'd like to say that the el vs got the idea from elvis. >> so they're in denial. they're arguing about side issues. i mean, it is amazing. >> yeah, look. ultimately, they want to see their elected officials in washington get to work and not really engage in the side shows. republicans are likely to pay a larger political price if we go over the fiscal cliff. poll after poll after poll shows a majority of americans were playing rather than the president.

everyone the republicans would like to see the wealthy play a little bit more. >> well, thanks for your time tonight. >> happy christmas, holiday, holy day, whatever else. just live life. be happy we're alive and healthy. and god bless the folks. >> when the gop can't find a scandal, that i'm drum one up. but why are they attacking hillary clinton? is it really all about 2016? >> plus, honoring a hero who rose above discrimination to make this world a better place. ♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] campbell's green bean casserole. it's amazing what soup can do [ male announcer ] it started long ago. the joy of giving something everything you've got.

it takes passion. and it's not letting up anytime soon. at unitedhealthcare insurance company, we understand that commitment. and always have. so does aarp, an organization serving the needs of americans 50 and over for generations. so it's no surprise millions have chosen an aarp medicare supplement insurance plan, insured by unitedhealthcare insurance company. like all standardized medicare supplement plans, they help cover some of the expenses medicare doesn't pay. and save you up to thousands in out-of-pocket costs. to find out more, request your free decision guide. call or go online today. after all, when you're going the distance, it's nice to have the experience and commitment to go along with you. keep dreaming. keep doing. go long.

have you joined the "politics nation" conversation on facebook yet? we hope you will. today, the president tweeted this photo of himself at the dnc saying it was one of his favorite moments of 2012. we asked our facebook fans for their favorite moments. lisa said hers was michelle obama's speech at the dnc. linda said hers was election night when president obama won reelection. what's your favorite moment? tell us. please head over to facebook and search "politics nation" and like us to join the confers tven that keeps going long after the show ends.

when the right wing can't find a scandal, they do the next best thing.

make one up. secretary of state hillary clinton was set to testify today about the attacks in benghazi. but while suffering from a stomach virus, she fainted, hit her head and sustained a concussion. doctors told her to work from home this week. and deputies testified at today's hearing instead. clinton will still testify in a few weeks, but the gang over at fox are very, very suspicious. >> when you don't want to go to a meeting or a conference or an event, you get a diplomatic illness. >> if she's in the nfl, i wouldn't let her play. but i think she can make a phone call. >> charles, you had a good line. hill ri has severe benghazi allergy. >> i've been doing a lot of work on that. she is the first reported case and it's a very, very severe one. >> very, very severe. let's see the medical report on that. >> first, they wanted to see the

president's birth certificate. then they wanted to see his college transcripts. now they want to see hillary clinton's medical records. unfortunately, we've seen this movie before. last year, they -- the right unfairly blamed attorney genric holder for the fast and furious gun walking screen. now, it's secretary clinton's turn. the republicans can't lay a glove on the president, so they attack everyone around him. and, now, they're trying to get in some punches on a potential 2016 candidate as well. joining me now is ryan grimm, washington bureau chief for the huffington post and molly bowl. thank you both for being here tonight. >> thanks for having me. >> thanks, reverend. >> ryan, what's behind all of these ridiculous attacks on secretary clinton? >> part of it is just to have a

primal hatred that a lot of republicans still have for the clintons. we kind of forget that because she now, you know, is bathed in this glow of this 60 plus percent approval ratings. she's helped turn kind of the world's opinion around about the united states, you know, more than 50% of people want her to run for president and actually would support her for president according to a new poll. so you kind of forget just the deep, deep hatred that republicans had for both clintons back in the '90s. and, you know, what you also forget, clinton is not one to shy from a fight. this is silly to think that she didn't want to go to that hearing and go toe-to-toe with these guys who are accusing her of all kinds of conspiracy of covering up things related to benghazi. the clintons are happiest when they're doing battle with republicans. she'll be happy to come in

january. and it will be good theater. this is what we're going to see for the next couple years. >> isn't that the point, molly? she is going to testify. and foreign policy magazine says the panel investigating the benghazi attacks, quote, make a pretty strong case that the conspiracy theorists got this one badly wrong. the majority of the american public doesn't buy the right wing's rhetoric on benghazi. a cnn poll asked did obama intentionally mislead the public? 56% said no. so the republicans are fighting some that the panel is finding is absolutely wrong. most of the public does not believe the president covered anything up. clinton is testifying anyway. why are the republicans playing this movie over and over again using different i. targets each time, molly? >> well, to be fair, i think we should specify that this is a

few people on the fridges. this is not coming from elected republican officials. so this is a fringe view. but you saw with the whole susan rice thing, that the idea of a conspiracy, the idea of a cover up, became so much more politically powerful than the actual facts of the case. now, what we saw in that report was that there were serious problems in benghazi. there were security lapses. but that's not sexy enough. it's more sexy to imagine these conspiracies and fake illnesses and whatever else. so when that is the assumption, whatever facts come up are just funneled into that weird assumption. >> could any of this be political, as well, ryan? newt gingrich. he says that hillary clinton is the candidate to beat in 2016. he says i mean there -- i'm

quoting gingrich -- i mean if their competitor in 16 is going to be hillary clinton supported by bill clinton and presumedly a still relatively popular president, barack obama, trying to win that will be truly the super bowl. and the republican party today is incapable of competing at that level, mr. gingrich says. >> yeah, and i think that's right. and i think they'd like to chip away at her popularity, as they can. it's going to be tough because, you know, she's going to -- it looks reich she's probably going to take some time off and do some philanthropic things that are going to be hard to kind of smear over the next year or two. but i think that's right. i think that's what's driving this. but they should be careful because, you know, if they pull clinton too much into a partisan contest, she'll remember just how much she enjoys it. and that will give her the taste of it. and then she will jump in. and then there will be that soup other bowl, like gingrich said, is going to be very tough for them to win.

>> and, molly, i think that the smear stuff, whether we consider it a few or the many, look at what happened with susan rice. look at what happened with eric holder, the attorney general of the united states. i mean, these guys build up a steam roll over there in various parts of the right. and it ends up smearing people unfairly and can do damage no matter how out of the mainstream and far from the truth the charges may be. >> i think it is so funny to note that what's happening here is basically a republican strategy to elevate the clintons that is now backfiring. you remember during the campaign, mitt romney cast bill clinton as the good democrat so that he could cast barack obama as the bad democrat. in a lot of ways, republicans have done the same thing with hillary clinton.

she's done a good job with the opposing party and congress and all. but there is a way to pretending that obama was not purely partisan and that means she has this huge bipartisan popularity now. and then, when bill clinton speaks for obama at the convention, republicans have to suddenly go back and eat their words. well, it's also funny, ryan, because a few days ago, it was susan rice that did it. they can't decide which conspiracy and who's the one at fault. if susan rice was the one that was covering up and doing all kinds of things, why would they need a conspiracy for the concussion of hillary clinton? i mean, the public really can't be duped by that kind of ploy. >> i think it kind of illuminates one of the flaws in the republican infrastructure right now, which is that they can't seem to let go of things.

and i don't know exactly what it is, what the incentives are that line up. but you see it. and you mentioned fast and furious. and they pounded on fast and furious for like a year, year and a half. and the public counted on it for, like, a couple days. so the fact that they're still talking about ben ghazi, it was a tragedy what happened, but it's been an awful long time. since then, we have eve had a hurricane, we've had a horiffic shooting. since then, there's elements of insfra structure that keep talking about benghazi. it's almost like you have a political strategist saying okay, this cannot go on. >> ryan grimm and molly bowl, thank you both for your time tonight.

>> thank you. >> remembering a true american hero. that's next. [ male announcer ] research suggests cell health

plays a key role throughout our lives. one a day men's 50+ is a complete multivitamin designed for men's health concerns as we age. it has 7 antioxidants to support cell health. one a day men's 50+.

can i still ship a gift in time for christmas? yeah, sure you can. great. where's your gift? uh...

whew. [ male announcer ] break from the holiday stress. ship fedex express by december 22nd for christmas delivery. you iraq war looking at a live picture from capitol where a live senator is lying in state. the nine-term senator died this week at age 88. colleagues remember them today as a true patriot who served in the senate for nearly five decades. he was also a hero in world war ii, in a unit with fellow japanese americans. many of whom had been in internme internment camps. he lost an arm in come bat and was eventually awarded the medal of honor for his bravery. but he still faced discrimination back home in the states. just listen to what happened when he entered a barbershop in his uniform with his